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Friday, May 9, 2014

In Which Jenn Makes A Recovery Smoothie

Yesterday I ran fifteen miles, but they weren't good miles; they were the hot, sweaty, somewhat uncomfortable but entirely determined miles of a person who doesn't know when to let Plan A succumb to Plan B, Plan B being to stop at the normal eleven miles and go home. But I had said to myself, today I shall run fifteen miles, so by God I ran fifteen miles. Then I went home, and felt a little sick for the rest of the evening.

Don't do that, guys. Plan B is still a good one. Know when to cede to Plan B.

But my point here is not that I'm an idiot (although that's true and something you should know about me if we're going to be friends) but rather that by the time I had finished those dumb stupid fifteen miles, I was stumbling back to my apartment internally screaming MY KINGDOM FOR A RECOVERY SMOOTHIE, which, incidentally, makes me think first not of rightful Shakespeare but rather that scene toward the beginning of Robin Hood: Men in Tights where Cary Elwes Rents-a-Wreck.

Cary Elwes notwithstanding,* I made my recovery smoothie, and it was awesome, and while it's not overly complicated I thought I might as well share the recipe with you, y'know? Because I am a giver.

Coconut water (I usually use one single-serving container of Grace brand because it's cheaper)

A heaping spoonful, approx. 1/4 cup, of nonfat plain Greek yogurt (I use Chobani because a full serving of that stuff has 22 GRAMS OF PROTEIN YOWZA)

The largest handful of spinach you can muster, about a medium-sized salad's worth

1/2 cup frozen mangoes (frozen berries also work nicely, but not blueberries because yuck)

Optional additions:

One packet EmergenC in a complementary flavor; as a general rule anything orange will work

One serving or dose or whatever of fiber powder

Directions:

Naturally in a smoothie recipe situation it's tempting to just say "Combine ingredients, blend, drink," but I have discovered that the order of operations affects how effectively - and messily - your blender does its job. So, in my as-per-usual too-detailed way, here are my instructions.

Dump the frozen mangoes in the bottom of the blender.

Add your Greek yogurt on top.

Now pile your spinach inside.

If using, sprinkle on EmergenC and fiber powder.

Douse the whole thing in coconut water - electrolytes, baby!

Okay, NOW you can blend and enjoy.

I think the plain Greek yogurt, in addition to adding delightful protein, has a pleasant tang, but if you're into something sweeter you can use a fruit-based version or add some honey or a sugar packet. You can also adjust the amount of yogurt and/or coconut water if you'd like a thinner or thicker smoothie.

4 comments:

I need to get on board with this smoothie thing. It's easy, it's good for me, yadda yadda yadda. But the REAL reason I am commenting is because not only are you talking about Cary Elwes, who is clearly awesome, but you referenced him in Robin Hood: Men in Tights (he was "twerrific") AND The Princess Bride AND PSYCH! And now I feel the urge to watch all 3 of these things simultaneously.

THESE ARE ALL AWESOME THINGS. Honestly, I could listen to that man talk all day; his speech patterns as Despereaux are mesmerizing. If I could isolate the phrase "Then I'm going to MAKE you look foooooooLISH" it would be my text ringtone, thus confusing the hell out of anyone in my vicinity but pleasing me enormously on a regular basis.

I've been meaning to try coconut water in smoothies! I'll have to pick some up, since I've been pretty much exclusively having smoothies for breakfast since I got home from school. This recipe looks fabulous!